Ultimate (film)
Ultimate is a 2010 superhero film based on the Milwaukie Comics character of the same name. It was directed by David Slade and written by Dan Fogelman. The film stars Dan Stevens, Bobby Cannavale, Scarlet Johansson, Jodie Foster, and Brad Pitt. The film ran 123 minutes and grossed $698,491,347 based on a budget of $200 million. Plot 14 years ago, Lucas Triple was one of the weakest, slowest children in his school. Even now, Lucas is still skrawny and slow. However, after he gets into a car accident with an acid truck, he awakens in a lab. Doctors Emily Brown and Miles Chare reveal they took Lucas to their lab after the accident and were able to keep him alive. However, Lucas learns his genes were changed in the accident and he now has incredible superhuman strength and speed. Lucas views this as a gift, and Emily convinces him to become a superhero to help Roseway City, where they live. Emily introduces Lucas to her daughter, Bethany, who Lucas takes a liking to. Lucas uses his powers to stop small street threats at first, with Emily and Miles guiding him at their lab. Lucas is recognized by the public and he decides to keep a secret identity by making a suit. Emily and Miles make him a suit that can withstand his superspeed. The press gives him the name, "Ultimate". Ethan Solomon was also a part of the crash, but he was hospitalized instead. He has lost feeling in his legs and his face is disfigured. However, his intelligance is boosted supremely by the accident and he deduces Ultimate is Lucas and tracks down Emily and Miles. Emily, while at the lab alone, is attacked by Ethan, who forces her to fix him. Emily reluctantly gives Ethan a mixture of Lucas' blood and the chemicals on the truck that crashed. Ethan is able to walk again and gains super-strength. Ethan injures Emily anyway, breaking her back and destroying her and Miles' work. Lucas asks Bethany on a date, and she agrees. The two are at a restaurant until Lucas is alerted by Miles that Ethan is out there. Lucas tells Bethany her mom is hurt and they go to the lab, where Lucas leaves to not reveal his identity to Bethany. Ethan calls out Ultimate to the road where the accident happened. Ultimate and Ethan fight, where it is revealed Ethan is not only stronger than Lucas, but he can predict his every move due to him having boosted intelligance. Ultimate is defeated and he escapes, leaving Ethan to escape himself. Bethany is able to deduce that Lucas is Ultimate, and he comes clean to her. She understands why he kept it from her and Miles reveals Emily may never walk again. She realizes Ethan did it on purpose, paralyzed her just after she was able to "un-paralyze" him. Lucas leaves to get revenge, as Bethany comforts Emily. Lucas tracks Ethan down to his hometown, Newcrest. Lucas tries to talk Ethan out of it, as Lucas, but Ethan instead attacks him. Lucas tells Miles to alert the press that Newcrest needs to be evacuated. A mysterious organization arrives and evacuates the town and even helps Miles stop Ethan, who is knocked unconscious. Lucas tries to take Ethan back to the lab, but the organization takes Ethan and Lucas. At their base, Ethan is tortured to give up the location of a mysterious artifact, while Lucas is in a cell. Their leader, David Barton, questions Lucas over why he has decided to fight crime. Lucas answers everything truthfully, except him saying he works alone. At the lab, Bethany, Emily, and Miles realize Lucas has been taken and use security footage to find that the secret organization, F.I.R.E.B.I.R.D. has taken Lucas and Ethan. Miles is able to make a temporary version of Lucas' powers into a serum, which he injects into Bethany. Bethany infiltrates F.I.R.E.B.I.R.D. and rescues Lucas. Barton kills Ethan after he gives up the location and he attempts to kill Lucas and Bethany, forcing the latter to make her first kill by snapping Barton's neck. Lucas and Bethany escape back to Roseway, where they reunite with Emily and Miles. Lucas asks Bethany on another date, which she agrees to. In a mid-credits scene, Barton is buried, as his son and daughter look on in tears. In a post-credits scene, F.I.R.E.B.I.R.D. is revealed to have made their own copies of Lucas' blood. Cast *Dan Stevens as Lucas Triple/Ultimate *Bobby Cannavale as Ethan Solomon/Bones *Scarlett Johansson as Bethany Brown *Jodie Foster as Emily Brown *Brad Pitt as Miles Chare Reception 'Box office' Ultimate grossed $300,531,751 million in North America and $397,959,596 million worldwide making it the 6th highest grossing film of 2010 worldwide. 'Critical reception' Reviews for the film were mixed. Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a score of 48% based on 240 reviews, with an average rating of 5.5/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Ultimate relies too much on it's predecessor's plot to give much impression, despite being a visual treat." Review aggregation website Metacritic, which assigns a weighted mean rating out of 100 reviews from film critics, the film holds a rating score of 58/100 based on 38 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews".